Capital investments, 4th quarter 2016:
Insurance companies’ investment assets increasing
Statistical news from Statistics Sweden and Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority 2017-03-03 9.30
Insurance companies’ total investment assets amounted to SEK 4 264 billion at the end of the fourth quarter of 2016. This is an increase of SEK 45 billion compared with the third quarter and an increase of SEK 256 billion compared with the corresponding quarter in 2015.
Investment assets of life insurance companies amounted to SEK 3 758 billion at the end of the quarter. This is an increase of SEK 44 billion compared with the previous quarter, and an increase of SEK 247 billion compared with the fourth quarter of 2015. Holdings of shares and funds were a contributing factor to the continued increase in investment assets of life insurance companies. These holdings comprise 63 percent of life insurance companies’ total investment assets and were valued at SEK 2 364 billion at the end of the quarter. During the quarter, net purchases of shares and funds amounted to over SEK 23 billion, and in the full year 2016, net purchases amounted to nearly SEK 115 billion. Life insurance companies’ holdings in bonds did not contribute to the increase in total investment assets. Rather, the value of life insurance companies’ bonds fell by SEK 26 billion in the fourth quarter. During the quarter, net sales of bonds amounted to SEK 10 billion, and in the full year 2016, net sales amounted to nearly SEK 24 billion.
Investment assets of non-life insurance companies amounted to SEK 506 billion at the end of the fourth quarter, which was an increase of SEK 1 billion compared with the previous quarter. It was an increase of SEK 9 billion compared with the fourth quarter of 2015. Holdings in shares and funds were a contributing factor also for non-life insurance companies to the total increase in investment assets. Shares and funds comprise 43 percent of non-life insurance companies’ total investment assets and were valued at over SEK 219 billion at the end of the quarter. Purchases and sales in shares and funds offset each other during the quarter, and for the full year 2016, net purchases of shares and funds amounted to over SEK 3 billion. Non-life insurance companies’ holdings in bonds also increased during the quarter and amounted to SEK 214 billion at the end of the quarter. During the quarter, net purchases of bonds amounted to SEK 1 billion, and for the full year 2016, net purchases amounted to nearly SEK 4 billion.
Publication
A more detailed report of this survey is published in a Statistical Report.
Next publishing will be
2017-06-01 at 09:30.
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